Trouser pocket construction



G. w. GEISSMANN TROUSER POCKET CONSTRUCTION Aug. .1. 1956 4 3 Sheets-Sheet 1 Filed July 5. 1953 BY MM HTIOK/VfI J 7, 1956 5. w. GEI'SSMANN TROUSER POCKET CONSTRUCTION 3 Shets-Sheet 2 Filed July 5, 1953 m m m m Aug. 7, 1956 s. w. GEISSMANN 2,757,332

'raousm ocxsr cons'mucnou I Filed July 3, 1953 3 Sheets-Sheet 3 1 INVENTOR.

Gums Wmrcoms GEISSMQNN 'of trousers of Figure 1;

United States Patent Office 2,757,382 Patented Aug. 7, 1956 TROUSER POCKET CONSTRUCTION Gladys Whitcomb Geissmann, New York, N. Y.

Application July 3, 1958, Serial No. 365,956

3 Claims. c1. -2--247 This invention relates to wearing apparel and more particularly to new and improved pocket constructions for trousers.

Conventional pocket constructions for trousers tend to be complicated and costly and often add bulk which is unattractive and uncomfortable. The deficiencies of present designs are particularly evident in the case of washable trousers, the pockets of which almostv invariably when trousers are expertly packed.

Accordingly, the present invention is concerned with 'new and improved pocket constructions for trousers which overcome the several disadvantages of conventional designs. 7

One object of the invention is to provide a pocket construction for trousers which utilizes relatively few layers of fabric and which may be economically manu fac'tured.

Another object of the invention is to provide a new and improved pocket construction for trousers which is conducive to ease of ironing and washing.

Yet another object of the invention is to provide a pocket construction for trousers which affords a flatter,

andv neater appearance in trousers, and which will result in less consumption of space when-stored.

These and other features and objects may be attained in accordance with the invention by means of radical revision of conventional pocket designs for trousers which will be fully understood by reference to the following specification taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings showing preferred embodiments thereof and in which:

' Figure l is a side View of the upper portion of a pair of trousers showing the side and rear pockets;

Figure 2 is a fragmentary view of the upper inside front and side portions of the trousers of Figure 1 showing pocket construction formed in accordance with the present invention;

Figure'3 is a plan view of which may go into the side pocket assembly of the pair Figure 4 is a fragmentary side view showing how the four fabric parts of Figure 3 are brought together;

Figure6 is a fragmentary view of the upperinside four of the five fabric pieces v Figure 5 isa fragmentary side view showing the pocket construction with the body fabric of the trousers folded upwardly toreveal all five parts thereof;

method for incorporating the side and rear pocket assemblies in the side seam of the trousers;

Figure 7 is a fragmentary view of the upper inside front and side portions of a pair of trousers corresponding to Figure 2 but showing a more conventional fly construction and a vertically disposed side pocket;

Figure 8 is a fragmentary view as seen from the outside of a rear pocket assembly formed in accordance with the invention but with the outer fabric of the trousers and the outermost pocket part folded back to reveal the inner construction;

Figure 9 is a fragmentary view of the back pocket construction as viewed from the inside of the trousers with one layer of pocket fabric partially folded back to reveal details of the facing construction at the top of the pocket;

Figure 9a is a view in vertical section and also in perspective taken on the line 9a9a of Figure 9 looking in the direction of the arrows;

Figure 10 is a fragmentary view of a side pocket construction as seen from the inside of a pair of trousers which do not have a side seam or a back pocket; and

Figures 11, 12 and 13 are fragmentary views of the insides of trousers embodying, respectively, three modified pocket constructions.

Referring to the drawings the invention is illustrated at Figure 1 as embodied in a pair of trousers 20 having a waist-band portion 21 along which belt loops 22 may be attached, and having side and back pockets 23 and 24, respectively. The trousers 20 are of the type formed with a side seam 25 extending from the waist-band to the cuff and the side pocket 23 is slanted or inclined with respect to this side seam. The side seam 25 in accordance with conventional practice brings together front and back body fabric portions 26a and 26b. It should be understood, however, that the invention is not limited to trousers having a side seam or to side pocket constructions in which the slit of the side pocket is inclined, the invention being equally adaptable to more conventional trousers having vertically slit side pockets (Figure 7) as well as to less conventional trousers (Figure 10) such as childrens trousers having no side seams.

Referring to Figure 2 in particular, the upper inside area of the right hand side of a pair of trousers extending from the fiy 27 to the center seam 46 at the back of the trousers is shown. The fiy construction of this garment is in accordance with the disclosure of the applicants U. S. Patent No. 2,629,875 although it should be understood that conventional fiy closure construction such, for example, as that shown in Figure 7, may be used.

The side pocket construction will be described first, having reference in particular to Figures 2-7 and 10.

The side pocket 23 may be carried for the most part by the front body fabric portion 26a of the trousers, the external or exposed surface of this fabric portion being shown at Figures 1, 3, 4, 5, 7 and 10, and the inside or unexposed surface at Figures 2 and 6. For purposes of clarity the external surfaces of the front and back body fabric portions 26a and 26b of which the trousers are formed are shown in the drawing as textured whereas the verso surfaces, which are disposed inside the trousers and which are normally invisible, are not. Also, neither surface of normally unseeen fabric parts which go into the pocket construction is shown as being textured.

The front body fabric portion 26a, as best seen in Figures 1 and 3, is formed with triangular cut-out at its upper left hand corner in which is fitted a supplementary fabric hip-piece 28 inseamed into the side seam 25 at its left band edge and inseamed at 29 to the fabric portion 26a. The two inclined or slanting edges 30a and 30b of the fabric portions 26a and 28, respectively, are not joined. but rather define the opening for the pocket 23 in the completed assembly. Usually .the inclined edge 30b of the supplementary fabric piece 28 will be disposed below the edge 30a (as best seen in Figure so that only the body fabric of the trousers will be visible at the margin of the pocket.

The inside margin of the pocket below the edge 30:: may be faced with a piece of body fabric 31 by inseaming to the fabric portion 26a. To add strength to the margin of the pocket a bar tack 32a (Figure 4) may be used at the junction between the pocket edge 30a and the vertical seam 29. The pocket area within the trousers is defined by two pieces of fabric, the first comprising an interlining fabric portion 32 (Figure 3) and the second comprising a fabric portion 33 (Figure 5 The fabric portion 33 at its upper end is joined by a seam 34 to the inner facing 31, preferably by inseaming. The right hand and lower extremes of the fabric portion 33 are joined to the interlining fabric portion 32 by means of a seam 35 and all of the vertical edges disposed at the right hand side of Figure 5 are caught in a vertical seam 36 (Figure 6) which is preferably inseamed and which in addition catches the zipper tape 27a which defines one edge of the fly closure 27 The left hand edge of the interlining fabric portion 32 is caught in the vertical side seam 25 of the trousers as best seen in Figure 6, and the top of the fabric interlining portion 32 is inseamed at 37 to the upper .edge of the waist-band 21 of the trousers, the latter seam being best seen in Figure 4 at the top. In the event it is necessary to stiffen the waist-band of the trousers a supplementary fabric stiffening band 38 (Figures 4 or 9a) may be caught in the inseam 37 at the top of the waist-band 21, the stiffening strip being disposed between the several interlining portions and the body fabric portions. A Watch pocket 28a may, if desired, be formed in the triangular piece 28 above the side pocket 23, as illustrated at Figure 5.

In this fashion a complete side pocket assembly is provided which is held both at the mouth of the pocket and at the sides. It is not freely suspended as in the .case of conventional pockets so that in washing operations it will not tend to become bunched or lumped in the vicinity of the waist-band. Moreover the pocket assembly may be easily smoothed and flattened on an ironing-board for example, by smoothing the outside body fabric of the trousers. Thus the ironing operation becomes a simple one both in terms of preparing the work and of carrying out the actual movements of the iron. Since there is no seam which catches up more than four layers of fabric, and since these seams are limited only to the side seam and possibly the waist-band scam (in the .event a stiffening band is used) there is relatively little bulk, thereby further simplifying the work of ironing. It follows that folding and packing are facilitated, with relatively less storage space being required. Also, the absence of bulk and extra fabric layers makes the pocket assembly more easily washable.

In the event a vertically disposed opening in the side pocket is desired and as illustrated in Figure 7, the construction is substantially the same with the exception that the hip-piece 28 is eliminated and the front body fabric portion 26a will be shaped so as to join the vertical side seam 25 near the Waist-band 21.

In Figure 7, as well as in other figures showing modifications, parts which are identical to those described above are identified with like reference characters and those which are substantially identical but which ditfer in ways such as shape, for example, are identified by like primed reference characters.

A further modification in the side pocket construction is illustrated at Figure 10, wherein a portion of the inside of a pair of trousers 20' is shown, which trousers do not have a side seam. In this case an interlining Portion 32 is joined to the body fabric 26a of the trousers at the waist-band 21 by the vertical seaming line which secures the zipper tape 27a to .the fabric and, if desired, by a seam 39 which is, in the finished trousers, caught in the vertical back seam of the trousers. The opening of the pocket 23' will effectively secure the fabric portion 32' along the vertical line which would normally coin cide with the side seam of the trousers if such were used. If desired, the portion of the interlining portion 32' to the right of the pocket opening 23 as viewed in Figure 10 may be eliminated and the interlining portion terminated on a line corresponding to the vertical line of opening of the pocket. In this case the pocket assembly will be held to the body fabric of the trousers at the top of the waist-band 21, along the vertical line of seaming of the zipper tape 27a and along the vertical line of the pocket opening 23.

Referring again to Figures 1, 2, and 6-9, the construction detail for the back pocket 24 is illustrated. The back pocket is disposed in the back body fabric portion 26b of the trousers and is formed by an interlining portion 4% secured at the inseam 37 at the waist-band of the trousers, at the vertical side seam 25, and at the location of the center back seam at the edge 39' as viewed in Figure 9.

A second pocket-forming fabric portion 41 is joined to the interlining portion 40 by means of a U-shaped seam 42 as best seen in Figure 9. If desired the left hand vertical row of stitches in the seam 42 may comprise the side seam 25 of the garment or alternatively may comprise a line of stitching parallel to the side seam 25 and disposed in one of the inside flanges of fabric formed by the side seam. The opening of the back pocket 24 may be faced front and back with facing strips 43a and 43b (Figure 9a) formed of the same fabric as the body of the trousers. The facing strip 43a may be secured to one side of the opening of the pocket 24 by a line of stitching 24a and the strip 43b to the .other side by a line of stitching 24b. In each case the depending edge of the opposed interfacing surfaces 43a and 43b will be stitched respectively by means of seams 44 and 45 to the pocket interlining portions 40 and 41.

Thus the rear pocket will be secured in the trousers between the side seam 25 and the back center seam. This construction facilitates the simple flattening of the pocket assembly for ironing and materially simplifies the manufacturing cost by virtue of eliminated fabric pieces and sewing operations. It will be understood that the back pocket construction may be used alone or together with the side pocket constructions disclosed above.

In the event it is desired to incorporate plaits in trousers having pocket constructions formed in accordance with the present invention, conventional plaiting practice may be utilized for forming the plait in the exposed front panel of the trousers. Thus as illustrated in Figure 7, a conventional plait 47 may be formed in the exposed front panel of the trousers between the fly and the side pocket to provide for lateral expansion. However, because fabric interlining portion 32 joins the fly and the side seam to bridge the plait, a plait 48 may be formed in the fabric portion 32 to permit lateral expansion corresponding to that of the outer plait. The outer and inner plaits 47 and 48 may be disposed one immediately behind the other as shown, or the two can be laterally offset.

Referring now to Figure 11, a modified pocket construction is shown wherein the triangular hip-piece 28 as illustrated in Figure 3, for example, is eliminated as a separate piece. In the arrangement of Figure 11, the back body fabric portion 26b is formed witha triangular extension 28 corresponding to the triangular hip-piece 28 of Figure 3. In this case it will be noted that the vertical side seam 25 follows the line of the slanting opening of the side pocket 23, invisible from the inside of the trousers but shown in a dot-dash line to distinguish from the lines of stitching, before reaching the waist-band 21. Externally the trousers will appear the same as those illustrated in Figure 1, with the exception that the side seam 25 will not appear above the lower edge of the slit of the side pocket 23. In all other respects the side pocket construction may be substantially identical to those described above. If desired a curtain piece 49 may be applied to the inside of the waist-band portion to add body.

Referring to Figure 12, another modification of the side pocket construction is shown wherein the triangular hip-piece 28 of Figure 3 is eliminated as a separate piece by making the interlining fabric portion 32 out of the same fabric as the body of the trousers and incorporating it in the pocket construction with the finished face out. Thus the part (partlyobscured by the curtain 49) of the fabric portion piece 32" which appears at the upper right hand corner as viewed in Figure 12 will be exposed to the outside of the trousers. In this arrangement, therefore, there will be only one layer of fabric above the opening of the side pocket 23. In the event it is desired to add body to the waist-band, the overlying curtain strip 49 may be used.

In still another modification of the invention as illustrated by Figure 13, the pocket interlining portion 32 may be formed integrally with the back body fabric portion. Thus the back body fabric portion 26b" may be cut to include a lateral extension portion 32", which will act as an inner lining behind the front body fabric portion 26a and which is sewn into the fly 27. In this modification, as in the modification of Figure 12, the interlining fabric portion 32" may be regarded as supplanting the hip-piece 28 so that there will be only one layer of fabric above the opening of the side pocket 23. If desired, the curtain piece 49 may be used to add body to the waist-band.

It should be noted that the simplicity of each of the pocket constructions described above greatly simplifies the manufacture of trousers whether they be fabricated by hand or by machine. Also, the trousers may, if desired, be fabricated completely by machine operations without recourse to hand operations. Moreover, unlike more conventional pocket constructions in trousers, the pocket constructions of the present invention may be incorporated in the trousers while the trousers are open or flat, that is, before the waist-band has been closed, thus affording more space and freedom for manipulation.

In each of the pocket constructions described above overedge stitching may be used at the free edges of the inside pocket parts as one means of eliminating raw edges. Such overedging is identified by the reference numeral 50 in Figure 2 of the drawing.

It will be understood that numerous variations in the seaming operations are possible for carrying out the invention disclosed herein. Moreover, the illustrated contours for the pockets and pocket parts should be thought of as illustrative and not as limiting the invention, which should not be limited except as defined in the following claims.

I claim:

1. In a pocket construction for trousers having a vertical fly closure at the front, a vertical seam at the side and waist-band and body portions, means defining a side pocket opening near the top of the trousers beneath the waist-band and adjacent the side seam, a first pocket part comprising a substantially rectangular fabric portion having a length exceeding by a substantial amount the vertical length of said side pocket opening and disposed inside the trousers and extending from the side seam to the fly closure, means attaching the first pocket part to the body portion along the side seam for substantially the full length of the first pocket part and along substantially the full length length of the fly closure, a substantial portion of the pocket part being disposed beneath the lowermost portion of the side pocket opening, means attaching the first pocket part at the top of the waist-band portion and at the top and bottom of said pocket opening, said first pocket part thereby constituting a lining for the trousers, and a second pocket part comprising a fabric piece (11sposed between the body portion and the first pocket part and defining in conjunction with the latter a pocket space communicating with the pocket opening, the pocket parts thereby being attached to the trousers along two substantially vertical lines each extending substantially to the bottom of the pocket space whereby the pocket construction is substantially free of pendulous portions and whereby the pocket construction can be flattened and smoothed within the trousers by flattening and smoothing the outer body portion thereof.

2. In a pocket construction for trousers having waistband and body portions, a vertical fly closure at the front, and a vertical side seam, means defining a pocket opening near the top of the trousers beneath the waist-band and adjacent the side seam, first and second pocket parts comprising overlying fabric pieces disposed within the trousers between the fly closure and side seam and joined together in part to define a pocket space accessible through the said opening, said pocket space depending beneath the lowermost point of the pocket opening for a distance comprising a substantial portion of the pocket space, means attaching the innermost of the pocket part at its top to the waist-band portion and at one side to the body portion adjacent the fly closure, and means attaching the other side of the innermost pocket part to the side seam from the lowermost point of the pocket opening substantially to the lowermost point of the pocket space, the one side of the said innermost pocket part being atttached to the body portion adjacent the fly closure for substantially the full length of the fly closure, the lowermost point of the fly closure being beneath the lowermost point of the pocket opening whereby the pocket is substantially free of pendulous portions to enable the pocket to be flattened and smoothed within the trousers by flattening and smoothing the outer body portion thereof.

3. In a pocket construction for trousers as set forth in claim 2, including means defining a back pocket opening adjacent the side pocket opening, a first back pocket part, means attaching the last named pocket part at its top to the waist-band and at its sides to the body portion, a second back pocket part defining in conjunction with the first a back pocket space, the means of attachmean of one side of the first back pocket part extending below the lowermost point of the back pocket opening to substantially the bottom of the pocket space, and means joining the first and second back pocket parts to the body portion on opposite edges, respectively, of the back pocket opening, wherein one side of the first pocket part of both the side and back pockets is attached to the body portion along substantially coincident lines.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 1,330,364 Wine Feb. 10, 1920 1,458,632 Stern June 12, 1923 1,496,683 Sternberg et al. June 3, 1924 1,529,154 Block Mar. 10, 1925 

